Wii U sells 400K in launch week, 'essentially sold out'

As expected, Nintendo has "essentially sold out" of Wii U's initial launch supply. The company has sold 400K units of its new-generation tablet-integrated console.

As expected, Nintendo has "essentially sold out" of Wii U's initial launch supply. The company has sold 400K units of its new-generation tablet-integrated console.

"Wii U is essentially sold out of retail and we are doing our best to continually replenish stock," Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime told CNET. "Retailers are also doing their best to get the product to store shelves. But as soon as product hits retail, they're selling out immediately."

With 400K units sold, the launch has bested that of Xbox 360, which debuted with 326K units sold in its first two weeks of sales. However, it comes short of the tremendous demand of the original Wii. Nintendo's previous generation console managed to sell 600K units in its first week, and remained perpetually sold out for years.

While Nintendo will likely love a repeat performance, Fils-Aime is skeptical. "Wii was a unique phenomenon," Fils-Aime said. "We've certainly learned many lessons from that and we are replenishing retailers more quickly this time around."